Forwards lead Nuggets

Chris Tomasson, Rocky Mountain News

Published October 15, 2007 at midnight

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Once again, the Nuggets must find ways to get Linas Kleiza minutes.

Kleiza is looking bound for a second straight strong preseason. The forward scored 19 points in 27 minutes to lead the Nuggets to a 118-102 win Friday night against Portland in Boulder.

After a fine preseason last fall, Kleiza didn’t play much early in the regular season before finally getting some time. He remains confident this fall despite being bound to play behind Carmelo Anthony, who logs 40 minutes a night.

"I’ve just got to do what I’m doing and everything will work itself out," Kleiza said. "I’ll find some place to contribute."

With the Nuggets having injury problems, Kleiza has started the first two preseason games at power forward. Anthony has been holding down his usual spot at small forward, and he led the Nuggets on Friday with 22 points.

"He’s playing pretty good, so we want to use him for what we can use him for," Anthony said of Kleiza.

Anthony had a strong game, with seven rebounds, five assists and three steals in 26 minutes. The Nuggets (2-0) also got 17 points from guard Allen Iverson.

Smith sits

After a shaky preseason opener Tuesday and an emotional practice Thursday, Nuggets guard J.R. Smith didn’t play Friday.

Coach George Karl said "there’s going to be somebody in the bullpen" each preseason game. Asked if Smith not playing had anything to do with the week’s events, Karl said, "I don’t think so, but you can write whatever you want."

Smith apologized to his teammates after practice Thursday. He told them, "I’m not trying to be a team cancer."

Smith declined comment after the game Friday but said after the morning shootaround he disagrees with there being "a lot of speculation and stuff going around about me being an individual player."

Regarding his apology, Smith said "something between me and the team" happened Thursday, but he wouldn’t elaborate.

"I just want to let my teammates know I’m here to win," he said. "It’s not necessarily about me. It’s about the team."

On Tuesday, Karl twice pulled Smith after fourth-quarter turnovers.

"J.R. has tremendous upside and tremendous talent, but you can’t continuously make mistakes which he made," Karl said after the shootaround.

Lights, camera, humbling

Iverson is a star in his own right. But acting alongside Eddie Murphy humbled him.

"It was a honor to get a chance to work with Eddie Murphy," Iverson said. "He’s somebody you always idolize. It was a moment I’ll cherish the rest of my life."

Iverson, Anthony and Karl filmed a cameo with Murphy on Thursday on the Pepsi Center court for Nowhereland. The set included a team of actors wearing Nuggets jerseys.

Anthony also called it an "honor" working with Murphy. Before the filming, he, Iverson and Murphy sat on the scorer’s table and joked around.

In the film, Murphy is an investor who gets advice from his daughter. He approaches Anthony and Iverson before a practice and wants them to invest with him, but the players offer their own financial advice before Karl comes over.

"I’m telling them I got to break up the meeting (for practice)," said Karl, who called the filming "fun."

Etc.

Karl said forward Kenyon Martin, recovering from microfracture knee surgery in November, will make his preseason debut Tuesday against Milwaukee in Green Bay, Wis., or Wednesday against Detroit in Grand Rapids, Mich. "It won’t be much more than 15 or 20 minutes," Karl said of Martin’s one game next week. "We’ll be cautious."

Forwards Nene and Eduardo Najera will travel when the Nuggets leave today for a three-game trip, beginning Sunday at Detroit. But Nene (calf strain) said he won’t play in any of the three and Najera (back strain) is unsure about his status.

Portland guard Steve Blake, who finished last season with the Nuggets, didn’t play. Blake said he has a mild ankle injury and the team sought to rest him.

Numbers game

6 is the number Nuggets camp invitee Brad Stricker is wearing, which belonged to Kenyon Martin for three injury-riddled seasons before he switched to No. 4, his former college number. "It ain’t my number," Martin said. "Whoever’s going to use it can have it."

He said it

"I thought Von was awful defensively in the first half and pretty damn good in the second half."

Karl, on Von Wafer, who started at shooting guard Friday and scored 10 points.

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